1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to particularly sized axles (“kera axles”) for vehicles having front engines and rear wheel drive. The axles are formula sized so that the shorter left axle has a smaller diameter than the longer right axle.
2. Description of the Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR §§1.97-1.98
In most automobiles that have front engine and rear wheel drive (non-independent suspension) there is a problem with having the torque delivered to the 2 rear wheels unequally. This is caused in most part by the instantaneous weight transfer to the left rear wheel and the fact that the right side axle is longer than the left side, yet both have the same diameter in the effective length of the axle. The fact that the left side axle is shorter with the same diameter means that the left rear wheel will lose traction first under hard acceleration because the shorter axle has a higher spring rate (torsionally stiffer) and the longer axle will twist slightly before spinning the wheel. This applies to all front engine cars with live rear axles with centered pinions. Applicant sees an application for a method of equalizing the torque at the tire contact patch by machining the left and right axles to different dimensions based on a formula used in calculating spring rates (torsional stiffness) of torsion bars. In applicant's calculations, applicant uses the static loaded radius (dimension from center of axle to ground) using either static or dynamic weight on the tire (portion of tire is flat on ground).
On high performance or racing cars in oval track racing and road racing, there are several ways of tuning the chassis to handle and have a neutral handling chassis. This means eliminating under-steering. While you are turning left in a left hand corner, the car wants to go straight to some degree. You also want to eliminate over-steering, which is when you turn left and the rear end comes around (spin out). You can tune the chassis by 1) increasing or decreasing the suspension spring rates at any corner of the car; 2) increasing or decreasing the weight on any wheel; 3) increasing or decreasing the anti-roll bar diameter on the front or rear of the car; 4) increasing or decreasing the circumference of either driving wheel (stagger). These are all ways that you can make large changes in handling characteristics but none of them match applicant's sized axles.